Recently I’ve seen the traffic spike on some of my Beatles writings, specifically on alt-history Beatles, so I’m going to assemble a guide to things I written on the subject over the years.
Post-Abbey Road Albums
It’s an interesting game to imagine what the Beatles might’ve done had they soldiered on into 1970. There’s interesting material on their debut solo albums, they worked together (but not as a foursome) in various capacities in 1970, so it’s not impossible that they could have made one more album. It’s just a question of picking the right tracks and sequencing them.
I took a shot at it myself with an “album” I called “Hot As Sun,” which, if I don’t say so myself, is damn near perfect. 🙂
I had later thoughts on “Hot as Sun,” but they’re not essential.
Others have done so, too. Sometimes, I’d weigh in with my thoughts as to whether or not they worked.
Stephen Baxter, the sci-fi novelist, did, creating an album he called “God.” (Thoughts on Baxter’s short story here.)
Spencer Leigh made on he called “Finishing School” in an article for BBC Radio Merseyside. I wasn’t a fan of this one, sorry.
We can’t forget Ethan Hawke’s “The Black Album,” a playlist he created for his daughter which was incorporated into the film Boyhood.
There was even a program on WAMU, “One More Album,” in which a group of Beatles experts discussed the subject.
Suffice it to say, this is a game people have played — and will play for years to come.
Alternate Beatles Albums
The Beatles considered making a Lord of the Rings film. I pondered what the film and soundtrack album would have been like.
What if The Beatles, commonly known as the White Album, wasn’t a double album? Here’s my edit.
Other Stuff
BBC Radio 4 broadcast a radio play, Sorry, Boys, You Failed the Audition, which looks at a world where they failed to secure a recording contract with EMI. My thoughts here.
Mark Shipper wrote a fictitious, comedic biography of the Beatles and their reunion in his 1970s novel Paperback Writer, and I reviewed that here.
This list of links isn’t comprehensive — I’ve written much more on the Beatles than this — but it covers as much of my alternate-Beatles material as I can remember penning over the years.